Allusions In Martin Luther King's Letter From Birmingham Jail

Letter from Birmingham Jail Allusions in Section 3 Martin Luther King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail is one of the most well known documents in American history. King’s profound ability to articulate important ideas, values, concepts and Biblical perspectives made for some of the most powerful and inspirational pieces of American literature ever produced. One technique that King used in his public speeches and letters was his allusions to historical figures, the Bible and opposing congressmen. During the 60’s when cultural prejudice still held strong roots in Congress, it was King’s talent to inspire the public that revolutionized America’s racial injustices. King’s frequent use of allusions in his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail proved his intelligence and greatly attributed to his success and popularity during the 1960’s. His allusions demonstrated his referential capabilities while also making his messages readily relatable to the public. It was often said that it was not King’s intelligence that made him seem so acumen, but that he was “well read”(knew much from reading). His frequent allusions to major documents and famous
He made many correlations to the Bible and major public documents, such as the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights to make his arguments accurate and mainly understandable by restating vital rules and quotes that even the illiterate could comprehend. In these paragraphs he quoted the Bible by using phrases like “moral light, “abyss of despair” and “ unjust posture.” King used the word “wait” in this section of the letter multiple times as a allusion to the current denial of rights to African Americans that had been going on for the last 340 years. He also stated that “justice too long delayed is justice denied” in correlation to the current racial dilemma in America at the